Challenges of Sharing Power BI Reports with Non-Licensed Users: Seeking Solutions for Accessible dat

[ThomasChef2]

Hi,

I started using power BI because i wanted a tool that would enable me to report  the

progress to people within my organization. Also, the data was refreshing 4 times a day so it also gave them access to the latest data.

I found teams and Power Bi tab to be perfect for the job.  As the people viewing the reports are not power bi or excel orientated and they are only interested in data and numbers. I had a Pro license and to be honest i didnt know that i was on premium capacity trial. It worked like a charm for 2 months and everyone was happy. However, as i found out later the trial expired and now no one can access the teams tab as they get the message that they need a license to see it. It is not feasible or making any sense to buy license for all of these people to just view the reports. I am coming here cause i want to see if anyone else had the same problem and how they dealt with it.  I mean if you can't access the report what is the point of having power BI. I mean is very limiting if you have to share it only with ppl who have license. Also,  everyone has to ask you to send them reports in power point or screenshots or in other formats which is irritating for them and on top of that you also lose the magic of interactive visuals. Is there any other solution to solve this or other ways to make the report accessible for viewing only for users without license?

Thank you in advance.

[Tutu_in_YYC]

As mentioned above, Publish to web is possible and free. But it is a security risk and may breach data privacy laws and regulations (of course depending on the data you are reporting).

[aj1973]

Hi @ThomasChef2 

Just like you assumed, what is the point for MSFT to offer Power BI as a SaaS if it is not going to make money out of it :).

You have 2 Options :

- Buy Premium (recommended for 500+ users), this way you won't need licenses for users.

- Or buy Pro Licenses for each user.

Publish to Web like @MrSplinter mentioned won't work if the trial is expired.

[Tutu_in_YYC]

Publish to web does not require Trial / Pro / Premium Capacity when used in Personal Workspace.

But is required if using a collaborative Workspace. ( I think this is what @aj1973 meant)

[MrSplinter]

You can publish to web, with all the risks and downsides associated with that (it basically becomes public).